Top 10 digital trends for power and utilities

The century old linear model of electrification is being challenged and tested thanks to the far-reaching digital transformation redefining the rules of power and utilities.

By undergoing and embracing a digital transformation, companies – regardless of sector – can apply unpreceded insight, new capabilities, innovative business models and lucrative opportunities.

Future figures speak for themselves. In 2020, the globe will be inhabited by 5 billion internet users, according to Dospeedtest. In 2030, there will be 3 trillion IP-devices and in 2040 around 40 million electric cars will be on our streets, according to GE Estimate. These statistics represent an unprecedented challenge to the way the energy sector operates, both currently and long into the future.

At its premiere Industrial Internet event, Minds + Machines Europe – which took place in Berlin this week, GE Digital presented a tantalising glimpse at how the ‘Electricity Value Network’ model may look like in the near future.

GE Power’s Baris Arikan explained to The Manufacturer: “As the electrification in the beginning of the 20th century was a must, the digital transformation is a must for every company these days.”

Currently, just 2% of the available data is being collected through Internet of Things (IoT) technologies and analysed to in the cloud. The future challenge will be to make use of the other 98% in order to create a smarter energy grid and a more environmentally friendly ecosystem, Arikan noted.